See the Kids From ‘The Goonies’ Then and Now

A reoccurring theme of movies during the mid-’80s was that of scrappy kids beating the odds. Daniel-son had to defeat the Cobra Kai in ‘The Karate Kid’ and the teens of Calumet, Colorado had to fight off most of the communist block in ‘Red Dawn.’ But probably the biggest underdogs were ‘The Goonies,’ a band of misfits from the goon docks of Astoria, Oregon who had to outlast a fugitive family to find the amply booby-trapped treasury of 17th Century pirate “One-Eyed Willie” and prevent their parents’ homes from being turned into a golf course.

‘The Goonies’ was an ensemble movie all the way, and the seven actors who played the ragtag gang of young treasure hunters all delivered memorable performances. In fact, most of them used ‘The Goonies’ as a springboard into long careers in TV and film, and even the ones who didn’t have found success in other venues.

So what exactly have the child actors of ‘The Goonies’ been up to since 1985? Read on to see.

Sean Astin, Michael “Mikey” Walsh

Warner Bros./Christopher Polk, Getty Images

Then: Astin played asthma-stricken treasure hunt ringleader “Mikey” Walsh in ‘The Goonies,’ which was his feature film debut. The son of actress Patty Duke, he first appeared on the small screen in 1981 opposite his mother in the TV movie ‘Please Don’t Hit Me, Mom.’

Now: Astin is known for playing the title character in the inspirational football tale ‘Rudy’ and the hobbit Sam Gamgee in the ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy — a duo of roles that would make him the envy of just about any actor out there. In 2012, the 41-year-old appeared on episodes of ‘NCIS’ and ‘Franklin & Bash,’ and provided the voice of Raphael in the pilot for the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja’ animated TV series. He has also signed on to voice Raphael in the controversial movie reboot of ‘TMNT,’ which is set for 2014 release.

Corey Feldman, Clark “Mouth” Devereaux

Warner Bros/Jason Merrit, Getty Images

Then: Feldman had been a working actor since age 6, but his biggest role to date was the wisecracking Mouth in ‘The Goonies.’ Much success followed for Feldman, including roles in ‘Stand By Me’ and ‘Friday the 13th: A New Beginning,” Of course, there were also his collaborations with the other Corey (Haim) in ‘The Lost Boys,’ ‘License To Drive’ and ‘Dream A Little Dream.’

Now: A great deal of Feldman’s later career has been defined by his relationship to Haim, who died in 2010 at age 39. Feldman starred with his longtime friend in the 2007-2008 reality show ‘The Two Coreys’ and left the program in protest of Haim’s continued drug abuse. Lately, Feldman has been seen in the Katy Perry video “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)” and the UK version of ‘Dancing on Ice.’ As for his most recent movie role, that was in the little-seen 2012 musical comedy ‘Operation Belvis Bash,”

Jeff Cohen, Lawrence “Chunk” Cohen

Warner Bros./Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

Then: In ‘The Goonies,’ Jeff Cohen played Chunk, the Goonie with the biggest appetite. Chunk was also known for his unique “Hawian shirt on plaid pants” fashion sense and the notorious “Truffle Shuffle.” Cohen had appeared in ‘The Facts of Life’ and ‘Benson’ before ‘The Goonies.’

Now: Cohen’s last screen credit was as a 16-year-old in the TV movie ‘Perfect Harmony.’ These days the 38-year-old, who has lost a lot of hair and a lot of weight since his time as a Goonie, is an attorney and the founding partner of Cohen & Gardner LLP, a firm which practices entertainment-related law. From what we can gather, Gardner is not a large, inarticulate fellow with a crooked face and an unusual hairstyle.

Ke Huy Quan, Richard “Data” Wang

Warner Bros./Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

Then: Quan, who was born in Vietnam and moved to the United States as a boy, played a large role in two pretty huge Steven Spielberg-produced hits of the mid-’80s. In 1984, he played Short Round in ‘Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom’ and followed that up the next year as the gadget-obsessed Data in ‘The Goonies.’ He is also known for playing Jasper Kwong on the last season of the sitcom ‘Head of The Class.’

Now: Quan’s last movie was 2002 Cantonese language film ‘Second Time Around.’ However, Quan has used the martial arts skills he began learning on the set of ‘Temple of Doom’ to become a fight choreographer on ‘X-Men’ and ‘The One.’ He also worked in the sound department for the 2006 action thriller ‘The Other Side’ and is known to attend sci-fi conventions.

Josh Brolin, Brandon “Brand” Walsh

Warner Bros./Stephen Lovekin Getty Images

Then: Josh Brolin is the son of actor James Brolin, but wasn’t exposed to his dad’s business until he took a theater class as a high school student. It wasn’t long after that that he snagged his first role, as big brother Brand Walsh in ‘The Goonies.’ He followed that up the next year with the lead role in 1986′s skater flick ‘Thrashin.’ Brolin believed his acting in that film to be “horrendous,” so he took about a decade break from movies, honing his craft on TV and in community theater.

Now: Brolin returned to feature films in the mid-’90s, with supporting roles in movies such as ‘Bed of Roses’ and ‘Flirting With Disaster.’ His career got bigger and bigger and by 2007 he was playing the lead in ‘No Country For Old Men,’ which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since then, he has starred as President Bush in ‘W’ and snagged an Oscar nomination for playing Dan White in ‘Milk.’ The 44-year-old is the star of the upcoming crime film ‘Gangster Squad,’ and has been married to actress Diane Lane since 2004.

Kerri Green, Andrea “Andy” Carmichael

Warner Bros./Dustbowl Pictures

Then: Kerri Green was cheerleader and reluctant Goonie “Andy” Carmicheal in ‘The Goonies.’ It was the first step in a nice movie run for the then 18-year-old from New Jersey. Later that year, she played John Candy’s teenage daughter in ‘Summer Rental,’ and in 1986 she starred in the high school tragicomedy ‘Lucas’ with Corey Haim, Winona Ryder and Charlie Sheen. ‘Three For The Road,’ which also co-starred Charlie Sheen, rounded out her string of high profile films.

Now: Perhaps it was just too much Charlie Sheen, but after ‘Three For The Road,’ Green quit acting to attend college at Vasser. She got married not long after that and currently lives in Nyak, New York with her husband and kids. Green still occasionally pops up on screens — she has guest starred on ‘ER’ and ‘Law & Order: Special Victim’s Unit’ and played the lead role in the 2010 indie drama ‘Complacent.’ The 45-year-old also writes screenplays and for a time had a production company.

Martha Plimpton, Stephanie “Stef” Steinbrenner

Warner Bros./Dave Kotinsky Getty Images

Then: Plimpton, who is part of the Carradine acting family through her dad Keith Carradine, first appeared as a 10-year-old in the Jane Fonda movie ‘Rollover.’ But her first prominent role was as tough girl Stef Steinbrenner in ‘The Goonies,’ for which she snagged a Young Artist Award nomination. She also starred in ‘The Mosquito Coast,’ ‘Running On Empty’ and ‘Parenthood’ as a teen actress. During that time period, Plimpton was known for her high profile relationship with the late River Phoenix, with whom she appeared onscreen in ‘The Mosquito Coast’ and ‘Running on Empty.’

Now: Since 2010, Plimpton has starred on the sitcom ‘Raising Hope’ as Virginia Chance, the young grandmother of the title character. She also snagged a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for her recurring role on ‘The Good Wife.’ The now 41-year-old has two Tony award nominations for work in the theater, and in 2010 she performed the one woman show ‘Martha Plimpton Sings?’ at New York’s Lincoln Center. And fun fact, Plimpton dated ‘SNL‘ funnyman Fred Armisen between 2005 and 2008.

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